Even before the coronavirus pandemic, there was one other major topic that dominated the international news this year: the terrible bushfires in Australia. They were absolutely massive and it’s estimated that millions of animals would either perish in the blaze or lose their habitat forever.

Even though COVID-19 has garnered almost all of the attention, the fire has still been causing the country and all of its inhabitants some major issues. People and animals are still dealing with the consequences and definitely not out of the woods yet.

Scientists believe that the 2020 Australian wildfires will have cost over a billion animal lives.

Among the lives lost, it’s extremely likely that over 8,000 koalas, one of Australia’s most prominent and known animal species, have already perished in the fires. As for the remaining population, they have now lost over thirty percent of their habitat, and will probably have to give up even more of their living space.

A lot of volunteers and animal organizations have been trying their best to save as many animals as humanly possible.

Some organizations have decided to take care of koalas specifically, as they have the knowledge, experience, and specialized care. Most of the koala’s that were found in the rubble were sent to a number of safe havens such as animal sanctuaries and hospitals. Some of the koalas have even temporarily found a home with regular people who volunteered to take care of the distressed animals while they were on a more permanent solution.

Of course, in order to help koalas in need, you first have to find them.

To aid with the search and rescue of koalas, search and rescue dogs were enlisted to help out and find the poor animals in the middle of the destroyed woods and carnage.

One of the dogs that assisted in the rescue was Keli, who actually found one of the tiniest koalas out there. Keli rescued this little furball who was in a terrible medical condition, completely dehydrated and malnourished. The scale registered less than a single pound for the poor animal.

The baby koala was found amongst one of the most damaged areas. His home was completely gone.

Of course, the first step was to rush the poor koala to the nearest specialized care center.

The doctors at the Koala Hospital Port Macquarie immediately knew that it would be a life and death situation for this poor animal, and the rescue didn’t come a second too soon. The vets diagnosed him with a very severe fungal infection that would’ve probably ended his life if left untreated.

Unfortunately, Keli and the animal rescue team have no idea what happened to this poor guy’s family. They could’ve gone missing in the carnage, but it’s also a possibility that this baby koala was rejected by his family because of his medical condition.

The baby koala wasn’t out of the woods yet but received the love and care he needed to get better.

Everyone was extremely patient and caring for this poor little furball, who was still very timid. Luckily, once his fungal infection was fully treated and taken care of, his condition, as well as his personality, started changing rapidly. It finally seemed like he was a happy, energetic koala again!

“Just a brighter moment in all the tragedy in Australia at the moment we wanted to share something good. Meet Koala Street Keli who was found abandoned on the ground, in very poor shape with a fungal infection and only weighing 275 grams. Look at Keli today a whopping 1 kg in weight, the fungal infection has gone and all his fur is regrowing,” the Koala Hospital doctors wrote on their Facebook.

After just a couple of weeks, he almost had a full patch of fur again and it didn’t take long before he started to get his weight back to healthy levels.

The plan is for the koala to go back into the wild once he’s fully recovered. The doctors also named him after the dog who rescued him: Keli.

There’s still a bit of habitat left, and doctors are confident that Keli will be able to lead a happy life in the wilderness.

“It’s still early days yet, we will get very excited when he makes 2.5 kg and its time for him to come into the “dehumanising trees ” in preparation for release back to the wild. Release will not happen until the cooler months, and thankfully there is still some good habitat left in selected locations.”

Thanks to the excellent search and rescue work of Keli the dog, Keli the Koala now has a whole life ahead of him.

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https://www.facebook.com/koalahospital/posts/10157994066284662

Source: Koala Hospital Port Macquarie (Facebook)